American Association of Museums selects Arizona State University Art Museum for a partnership with the University of S Paulo

TEMPE, Ariz. – The American Association of Museums (AAM) recently announced that the Arizona State University Art Museum is one of 17 museums included in its International Partnership Among Museums (IPAM) program for the 2005-2007 cycle. The IPAM program helps American museums advance their mission by carrying out collaborative projects with partner institutions abroad.

The ASU Art Museum’s proposal creates an international partnership with the Museu de Arte Contemporânea at the University of S Paulo, Brazil, whose collection of modern and contemporary Latin American art is one of the best in the hemisphere. Each participating staff member spends a month working on-site at the partner’s museum. ASU Art Museum’s Ted Decker, special museum initiatives manager, will work in S Paulo this summer. A staff member from the S Paulo museum will come to ASU next fall.

The proposed project will link the two museums via Web technology. Visitors to the two museum Web sites will learn about each institution, university and community. On kiosks in each museum lobby, visitors will be able to view works of art from permanent collections and learn more about the history of the works. Streaming video will provide live visual access to each museum’s galleries.

The IPAM selection committee chose the museum proposal because it educates audiences of both museums and cities about their activities and cultures, generating lasting ties between the two institutions.

This project expands the ASU Art Museum’s programming initiatives in Latin American art. Six exhibitions are scheduled over the next three years featuring work by artists from Argentina, Brazil, Cuba and Mexico. The partnership closely aligns with ASU’s design imperatives for global engagement and social embeddedness.

IPAM was founded in 1980 to establish linkages between U.S. museums and non-U.S. counterparts with similar missions. Museums are selected for the award based on a mutually beneficial, collaborative project proposal that is submitted jointly by the two institutions. The IPAM program is produced by the American Association of Museums and funded by the Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. For more information go to: http://www.aam-us.org/getinvolved/ipam/

The ASU Art Museum is part of the Herberger College of Fine Arts and has been called “the single most impressive venue for contemporary art in Arizona” by Art in America magazine. It is located on the southeast corner of Mill Avenue and 10th Street in Tempe. Exhibition hours are 10 a.m. - 9 p.m., Tuesdays and 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Admission is free. For more information, call 480-965-2787 or visit the museum online at http://asuartmuseum.asu.edu. 

Media Contact:
Denise Tanguay 
480.965.7144
denise.tanguay@asu.edu